1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a rotatable burner system for a gas range or cooktop and more particularly to a burner which may be rotated 180.degree. about an axis offset from the center axis.
2. Description of the Related Art
Gas ranges or cooktops are frequently provided with a plurality of burners for heating items for cooking food. A typical arrangement for a cooktop surface is shown in FIG. 1. In this arrangement, a top cooking surface 10 supports a plurality of burners 12. These burners may be arranged in any of a plurality of configurations but are often arranged as shown in FIG. 1. As can be understood, pots or pans containing food items may be placed above the burners for heating food items therein.
Typically, burners provide a generally circular heat source. Circular burners are well suited to heat generally circular pots and pans. However, in some cases, it is desirable to heat foodstuffs on an elongated cooking pan, such as a griddle. The conventional burner arrangement, such as shown in FIG. 1, is not well suited to provide heat to griddles and other elongated cooking pans since only one portion of the griddle can be heated by the burner. To address this problem, some cooktops have a pair of burners arranged relatively close to each other such as shown in FIG. 2. In this arrangement, a pair of burners 14 are positioned close to each other such that a griddle or other elongated pan can be positioned above two burners. In this manner, the griddle can be effectively and evenly heated along its entire length.
The disadvantage of having two burners positioned relatively close to each other is that they are not readily used individually. As a result, the paired burners are not very functional when they are not being used to heat elongated pans or griddles. One solution to this problem may be to employ movable burners. A cooktop or hob design shown in the publication Appliance Manufacturer dated April 1998, page 72, discloses the concept of providing two elliptical burners that can be rotated 90.degree. and used individually or together.